A Brief Chat with a Homeopathic Psychiatrist

Dr. Steven Goldsmith has been practicing homeopathy for 25 years. His speciality, homeopathic psychiatry, is not often heard about. Originally from the East Coast, He received his medical degree from Columbia University and served his psychiatric residency at Boston University Hospital, which is now Boston Medical Center. Dr. Goldsmith first did his residency in internal medicine, but then found psychiatry more interesting. Though he started a conventional psychiatric practice afterwards, he became “frustrated that people weren’t getting well.” He then looked into alternative forms of treatment. When he came upon homeopathy, he trained in it and still continues to receive training. He learned at what was then the Boston course of the International Foundation for Homeopathy. He also took Louis Klein’s Homeopathic Master Clinician Training Course for two years and subsequently studied with Roger Morrison and Nancy Herrick in the New England/New York area for four years. After that he studied with Rajan Sankaran and his group in Mumbai.

Since he started his practice in Oregon, he has seen patients with more serious psychiatric emergencies, such as suicidal and psychotic tendencies. He treats 85% of his clientele homeopathically. The remaining patients either prefer other treatment—such as Chronotherapy, supplements, Emotional Freedom Therapy, Light-Box Therapy and conventional psychiatric medication—or they need to become more stable with conventional meds before transitioning to homeopathy.

After practicing in Portland, Oregon, for eight years, he recently moved his practice to Los Angeles. He notes that he comes from a “rare breed”, though, he says, a couple of homeopathic psychiatrists practice on the East Coast. Why go to a homeopathic psychiatrist versus a regular homeopath? A homeopathic psychiatrist, he says, has “more extensive experience with mental health problems.”

Dr. Goldsmith refers to conventional psych meds as a “safety net” for unstable psychiatric conditions such as Bipolar Disorder or Psychosis with delusions and/or hallucinations. He said that if he is not sure as to which treatment path to take, or if the patient is agitated, he will start with psych meds, then transition the patient to homeopathy. Similarly, if a patient already started taking psych meds before coming to his practice, he will transition them.

Dr. Goldsmith believes that most mental illnesses are curable. He says that conventional meds cure almost no one, whereas he has seen homeopathy effect magnificent cures for mentally ill patients. “I have never encountered another form of treatment that equals homeopathy. It’s the genius of Hahnemann.”

Dr. Goldsmith’s shared the case of a lady in her mid-twenties, diagnosed with bipolar disorder. When he first met Natasha, her symptoms alternated between bouts of severe depression–when she would take to her bed for days, starve, and sometime stab or cut herself–and briefer periods of excessive energy, spending money, sleeping little and with a rude directness which contrasted sharply with her normally aloof and fearful demeanor. She had already had five psychiatric hospitalizations. She also had chronic fatigue and a tendency to fall and become temporarily paralyzed when laughing, crying hard or being acutely fearful (cataplexy). After prescribing six different homeopathic remedies that produced only temporary cures, he thought of Curare, from the Strychnos plant, which causes paralysis in healthy individuals. Within three weeks of the initial dose, Natasha reported increased energy, stable moods, and overall balance. After nine weeks, she no longer suffered from cataplexy. She experienced even better emotional health after12 weeks, no longer had highs and lows, and enjoyed stable moods. After a year, Natasha continued to feel better. Then, after experiencing a resurgence of the depression and cataplexy, Goldsmith gave her a second dose of the Curare. After two weeks, her improved mental and physical health returned, and has continued two years on.

Dr. Goldsmith reported another case, that of Penny, a young, recently married woman, who felt “possessed by Satan” ever her husband took her to a fundamentalist church. She sometimes heard voices and could tolerate neither sleeping alone nor being in total darkness. She couldn’t abide rooms painted in dark shades. She would often let out a scream in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat, after having nightmares of the devil chasing her. Her fearfulness kept her from working and she felt terrified leaving her apartment.

Dr. Goldsmith gave Penny a dose of Stramonium, which produces paranoia and hallucinations in healthy people. In two weeks, Penny’s fear abated significantly, and she no longer heard voices. She returned to work and in another four weeks, felt even more like her former, healthy self. Two years later, after having stopped treatment with Dr. Goldsmith, Penny experienced a mild recurrence of her symptoms, and a single dose of Stramonium returned her to full health.

About the author

Brenda Goldstein

Brenda Goldstein lives in Los Angeles with her husband, two sons and cat. She is a certified homeopath and homeoprophylaxis supervisor, in addition to being a published writer. Brenda is a frequent contributor to Homeopathy 4 Everyone.

1 Comment

Homeopathy and psychiatry, what a fantastic combination! Considering that mental and psychiatric illnesses increase in prevalence, even amongst the younger generations, it is great to have such a splendid tool to help patients recover. Keep up you wonderful work, Dr.Goldsmith, for the benefit of mankind, and thanks for the information, Brenda!